The invention relates to an overhead electrification plant for railway lines, or similar, of the type comprising at least one upper messenger cable, suspending a lower exposed electrical wire, the so-called contact wire, which is meant to make contact with electrical connections associated to engines, the so-called pantographs, the said contact wire extending in a predetermined position along the railway line, preferably above its tracks, and being supported by a plurality of suspension elements arranged at predetermined intervals along the railway line, and the said suspensions being composed, at least partially, of complex metal structures supported by fixed lateral supports, such as walls, poles, tunnel vaults, or similar, so as to project therefrom, and the suspension elements consisting of metal longitudinal elements connected to each other in a fixed and/or articulated manner, in such a way as to form a polygon.
The construction of overhead electrification plants, besides encountering the difficulties which arise from electric problems, and from the types of materials used to ensure the best functionality and a sufficient life and safety, also implies typical construction problems, arising form the need of quick and cheap purchase of material and assembly.
The suspensions are generally assembled on site, and their geometries must be adapted to the position of the contact wire with respect to the track of the railway line. These geometries are currently varied according to local needs, that is according to their local position with respect to the track. This requires a considerable number of different parts, and thus a higher care by the assembly staff, to respect the different geometries.
The varying configurations of the suspension elements are not only due to the possible different distances of their fixed supports from the track, but especially to the necessary superelevation of the outer side of the track with respect to the inner side, on curves, which makes the central point of the pantograph to be transversely staggered with respect to the vertical passing through the projection of the track axis.
The invention is intended to provide an overhead electrification plant for railway lines, or similar, of the type described hereinbefore which, thanks to simple and cheap expedients, involves a reduction of planning and engineering costs, material purchasing costs, and installation costs, besides faster installation and assembly procedures.